


cercis canadensis

by mingcat



Series: rosebuds and thorns [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Assassins & Hitmen, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternative Universe - Kingdom, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Blood and Injury, Blood and Violence, Discrimination, Duty, Emotional Hurt, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Happy Ending, Flashbacks, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Homophobia, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Kings & Queens, M/M, Minor Violence, Moral Dilemmas, Near Death Experiences, Politics, Sad with a Happy Ending, Secret Relationship, Soldiers, Suffering, Swordfighting, Swords
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-24
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-16 13:40:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,016
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28957314
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mingcat/pseuds/mingcat
Summary: It was easier to be the bad guy in the story. He could've never been a hero, not when the need and want to protect the ones he loved was stronger than anything else. If it meant he could raze the world and set it on fire and flood it with blood so long as he could love Atsumu and protect him with every fiber of his being, then Sakusa would gladly don the mask of a villain— the strongest and worst of them all. All that and more.Thorns and poison to protect his most precious rosebud.
Relationships: Kita Shinsuke & Miya Atsumu, Miya Atsumu & Miya Osamu, Miya Atsumu/Sakusa Kiyoomi, Miya Osamu/Suna Rintarou
Series: rosebuds and thorns [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2139582
Comments: 13
Kudos: 82





	cercis canadensis

> _**My heart broke with the pain of being both with and without you.** —d.j. _

"Where is he?"

Suna couldn't look Osamu in the eye. A harsh curse, crashing of glass, a loud thud, a frustrated yell.

"Dammit, Rin, the scrub fell a story down in a crumbling temple with fucking gashes on him so _where the fuck is he_?!"

Moments passed filled with silence, heavy breathing, and the damning ticking of the old grandfather clock in the living room. Slowly, Suna lifted his head, usually indifferent eyes gleaming with sadness and fear. "Sakusa took him away before any of us could reach him."

And it was like a wave of calm washed over Osamu. "Sakusa?"

Suna nodded.

Osamu let out a breath, shoulders sagging. And then he began to chuckle, as if the news of his severely injured twin brother being in the hands of the world's cruelest assassin was akin to the daily news of Lord Ukai losing another feast for crows in a bet to Lord Nekomata. Suna watched him, mildly horrified and entirely confused, as the other apologized and began picking up the broken shards of the window he broke. "Why— why are you so calm? _How_ are you so calm?"

Truly, Suna could not understand. For years, Atsumu and Sakusa had been at each other's throats during their time at the Guild as they trained to be soldiers, which only worsened when the raven broke the code and had willingly let innocent people die, going as far as killing fellow soldiers with his own hands. He picked up work as a paid killer after his self imposed banishment while the rest of his former cadre grew to be the legends they were today. Many times had the two men nearly kissed and laid with death at the other's hand so _why_...

Osamu let out another sigh, more agonized than the last. His eyes reflected in the glass shard in his hand, eyes similar to one's he'd seen glimmer only for two reasons. Another long moment passed before he spoke.

"Have 'ya ever wondered why Sakusa went back on his own oath?"

Suna wanted to scoff, but the look in the other's eyes made him push the urge down. "Every damn day. That fucker was always so secretive and distant, how the hell would I have ever figured out how he thinks."

Osamu blinked up at him, the smile on his face small, tired as if he had held so much weight on his shoulders— on his heart— and yet also relieved to finally be able to share the burden.

"In our line of work, our duty is always our top priority. It outranks everything else no matter how much we wish to twist and go around it. Sakusa didn't like that, and Atsumu didn't like that he didn't like it."

Suna crouched and began helping with clearing out the shards. "So that's it? He was just a selfish prick?"

Osamu let out a silent laugh. "More or less."

"So then why—"

"Because as he is now, he can finally choose to protect the one he loves above all else." He drew in a long breath after cutting the other off, instead looking out at the sprawling city below the grand quarters of the Guild, the lights slowly flicking out one by one as the night grew darker. In a softer tone and lower voice, he continued. "Because soldiers have laws and rules holding them back from doing so. As he is now…"

Osamu turned his head to look Suna in the eye. "Sakusa could, _would_ raise hell and bring the heavens down if that's what it took to protect my brother."

"But they fucking hate each other."

A nostalgic grin. "If only that was the case. But the damn bastards have been in love with each other since day one."

> _**I went to sleep with music in my soul: drenched in the melody of every word you spoke.** —d.j._

Atsumu always dreamt as he slept.

He dreamt of an old water fountain littered with fallen leaves and redbuds and the smell of pine and cocoa lofting through the air. He dreamt of a young boy in a silk tunic and black breeches with flawless skin, twin moles above his brow, curly raven locks, and obsidian orbs that held the secrets of the universe in them. He had tripped mid-swooning and knocked the raven haired beauty into the waters with him, drenching them both from head to toe. He dreamt of rising from the clear waters to be met with soft lips on his own.

He dreamt of giving his first kiss away by accident to an ethereal stranger in the waters blessed by the goddess of love, with ace of hearts fleurs floating down to the ground as the sun kissed the summit above the canopy.

He dreamt of watching the raven spar with a swordmaster— _their_ swordmaster— and holding his breath every time the boy managed to swiftly evade each twist and jab and attack with a maneuver of his own. Death on swift wings. Nimble, quick, graceful, and lethal.

A young Osamu had nudged him and scolded him for skipping their own practice time to watch from afar, in the shadows of a pillar. Atsumu had snapped back about how learning the 'enemy's' fighting style would help him grow to defeat him.

He dreamt of being partnered with the raven for a drill and losing as he took a knee with a sword at his throat. He had yelled out in frustration and pointed at the boy and swore his own promise.

 _"One day,_ **_one day_ ** _, Omi-kun, I'll make 'ya fall on yer ass with a crook of my finger. Just 'ya bloody wait!"_

Atsumu dreamt of the childish and petty banter he would exchange with the raven, now a few years older than the boy at the fountain, in practice.

_"Lookin' a bit winded over there, Omi-kun. Need a break?"_

_"You sure you're not offering one due to personal reasons? Your left swing was looking off. Getting tired, Miya?"_

_"Of seeing that damn look on yer face, yeah."_

_"Don't be such a sourpuss now, you still haven't beaten me."_

_"Oh, I'll fucking beat you to a pulp, 'ya smug asshat."_

_"Yeah?"_

The sight would always be vivid to him, even in memory, even in dreams, of how that slow, taunting smirk appeared in the raven's face as his eyes danced with light and the thrill of a fight— a mirror to his own.

_"Then come at me."_

He dreamt of childish contests and stupid bets. He dreamt of punishment drills with only the two of them. He dreamt of calloused hands and absurdly flexible wrists. He dreamt of whispered confessions and silent conversations.

Somewhere in between, he dreamt of kissing the raven behind the sleeping quarters with only the moon and stars as their witness. Intentionally, purposefully this time.

_"Been wanting to do that since the fountain."_

_"What's holding 'ya back now? I even made sure to set the mood with my lovely personality. The gorgeous full moon shines down on us and the debatably lovely scent of rain hasn't made me sneeze yet. I even took the liberty of using my own cloak as a blanket so yer pretty boy clothes won't get muddied—"_

_"Oh my fucking god, shut_ **_up_ ** _, Miya."_

_"Make me, 'ya buzzard."_

He dreamt of kissing him again, multiple times, in many variations, on many occasions, and always without an audience.

He dreamt of how the other's warm skin felt against his, how his name sounded on the other's tongue, how sweet were the promises the other spoke with his voice of a siren. He dreamt of stolen glances and secret gestures, of sneaking out and going on little adventures, of collecting insignificant objects on the road and giving them meaning only known to them.

Of course, Atsumu’s dreams weren't always pleasant. They weren't often and they had never really bothered him. But the recurring ones were the ones where he'd dream about how the raven broke his heart on three separate occasions. That, at the very least, would shatter him repeatedly.

_"Idiot!"_

He hissed at the raven, a young man who had grown well and yet not even at his prime, who stood by the door in his ripped uniform and bloodied cloak. He would've thrown a punch, had Atsumu not been bed ridden with burns crawling up his left forearm, along with multiple bruises and cuts all over him, the biggest one right over his left rib which sent a paralyzing pain shoot across his nerves with the slightest of movements. Which probably made arguing a whole lot more difficult for him— as if the person he was arguing with and the very argument itself wasn't already difficult enough.

 _"Fucking_ **_idiot_ ** _, dont'cha understand what you bloody_ **_did_ ** _? What were you freakin' thinking?!"_

The raven only glared at him, fists tightening and shaking at his sides, and yet he made no move to come closer.

_"I did what I had to do—"_

_"No, what_ **_we_ ** _had to do was get the Lord and his daughter to the extraction point, not leave them to die, 'ya bloody bastard!"_

 _"I had to_ ** _leave_** **_you_** _to fend off those raiders by yourself just to fucking get that bitch's stupid brooch, now look at what happened!"_

_"That doesn't mean 'ya get to decide whether or not they—"_

_"They called you a slur and said it was better off if you died."_

The lethal edge and killing calmness with which the raven spoke made Atsumu’s breath hitch every time. He stared into those bottomless black holes and saw nothing but rage. Not for him, never for him, but for what he was and what the majority of the world thought of it.

_"I only returned the sentiment."_

Atsumu’s dream would always blur after that, but he could vividly remember the sounds of yelling, of crying, of a door slamming, and his heart breaking.

Another recurring painful dream would be the one where he would wake up alone in a half cold bed in a pale, empty room a few days after his fight with the other and hear whispers of news that had the Guild in ruins.

Sakusa Kiyoomi had killed five fellow soldiers, which was considered taboo at the time, more than a man loving a man or a woman loving a woman. And vanished in the night.

Osamu would barge into his room, breathing hard, with his eyes wide in alarm and pain and sadness and worry— and pass on a note from the General himself.

_Let this be an official decree that Sakusa Kiyoomi is now an enemy of the kingdom. He has nulled his oath by going against orders and tainted his hands with the blood of his own brothers and sisters in arm. The council has requested lieutenant Miya Atsumu to personally seek out the traitor and escort him to the Celestial Court to receive the appropriate punishment for his crimes._

He wasn't entirely sure what happened in between, how long it took for him to fully heal or what the others told him about the mission or how he even found the raven in the first place.

Then there was the third and final recurring dream, the shortest of them all technically, but the one that bore the deepest scar on whatever ruins remained of his fickle little heart.

He dreamt of standing on a mountain above a sea of clouds, the stars drawn brightly across the dark canvas above. He dreamt of scattered bodies all around, the men he had brought along dead at the hands of the man that held him down.

He dreamt of moonlight bathing the raven in luminous hues of blues that only seemed to make the blood on him look even brighter.

He dreamt of lying on the ground with his lover above him, but no longer were they whispering sonnets and half-jokingly singing bards of affection and loving promises, only whispers of threats and backhanded jabs.

He dreamt of how beautiful the full moon was in the reflection of the blade against his throat.

_"Do it."_

He hissed, too tired and in pain to even try to push the other off. His own sword laid meters away and his knives and daggers embedded on the trees. The raven had his teeth bared and brows furrowed, but silver lined his eyes as he held back.

_"'Ya brought this upon yourself. Do it."_

_"It wasn't supposed to end this way, Atsumu."_

_"Well it fucking did so reap what 'ya sow and_ **_do it_ ** _."_

_"I … I can't."_

He had let out a scornful laugh, grin more feral and sharp than any he had ever given the other.

 _"Backing down now,_ **_Sakusa_ ** _? Where's that prodigy fucker who'd easily beaten ol' Meian the first time they dueled and the many times after that?"_

 _Sakusa_. The raven's eyes darkened further. Endless and endless and endless, those black pools. He felt the edge of the blade draw blood as it dug just a little bit further into his skin.

 _"That fucker_ **_died_ ** _when he realised all that he had believed in was a lie, that the oath he had sworn was a hollow, rusting golden dream of glory, and that he was a fucking_ **_idiot_ ** _to be too idealistic in a world of fault and narrow-minded bastard dictators."_

Many times had they argued on the morality of their job and the principles in which the raven believed in, and in which Atsumu had believed in as well but could not voice out, and every time it would always end with them just shoving it away beneath a rug of obliviousness. This was that and everything else erupting in their faces in shards of sorrow and pain and heartbreak.

They had stared at each other for seconds, moments, eternity. Eternity— it was eternity before Atsumu had smiled. It was barely there, more a ghost than an actual smile.

_"We were both idiots then."_

Atsumu dreamt of closing his eyes and breathing in the breeze that, above the scent of blood and ash, carried the scent of a memory long since passed. Of pine and cocoa and rosebuds.

_"I guess we were born in the wrong world, Omi-kun. Or maybe it was the right world, but at the wrong time. Perhaps if we had met in a kinder world, at a different time, maybe … maybe then. Maybe then we could’ve freely been who we are, who we wish to be. All those dreams and wishes and ideals you and I had, maybe then we could’ve made ‘em all come true. Maybe then, Omi-kun, maybe then I could’ve proposed to ‘ya without any fear of getting targeted and killed in the middle of my own wedding.”_

He chuckled. Wetness fell and trailed down his cheeks.

_"I love ‘ya, Sakusa Kiyoomi. So fucking much. And because I love ‘ya so fucking much, allow me to be selfish one last time, yeah? Do it.”_

He felt more than heard the shuddering breath the raven took in. It was when he felt the softest kiss right between his brows that he realized he, too, was crying.

_“I’ll always love you, Miya Atsumu. In this world and any other."_

A choked sob. Another kiss, pressed to his forehead this time.

" _You are my light, my life, and I will always,_ **_always_ ** _, protect you."_

The crack in the other's voice sent warning signals blaring in his mind, but before he could ask why, the raven was whispering his final words.

_"Until then, my love."_

Atsumu dreamt of opening his eyes, only to see the love of his life flip his sword and run it through him— right into his guts.

> _**I wanted to vanish so completely that even I would not remember me: no feelings, no memories, just the freedom of oblivion.** —d.j._

Sakusa startled a little, tensing as instincts took over for a slight moment before settling back. He ran his fingers through the ever soft locks of the faux blonde lying on his lap. He was breathing harshly, whimpering. Suddenly his eyes shot wide open, his limbs tensing from where they were tucked into his side. Sakusa continued his gentle ministrations, hushing the blonde.

"Shh, it's alright, love. Just a dream."

Atsumu lifted his head, eyes lined with silver. Another whimper escaped the blonde's lips as he pushed himself up against the raven, nuzzling his head into the other's neck, a chant of "Omi, Omi, _Omi_ ," steadily being whispered. Sakusa brought him closer, arms tightening in comfort and protection, as he began to sway them gently side to side, knowing that the action always helped calm the other.

"Careful now, you're still recovering," he whispered right against the blonde's ear.

The hand that drifted down to his stomach, lifting the shirt to trace over the scar there, told him enough of what dream the blonde had.

"I'm okay, we're okay, yeah? You're safe now, love." He pressed multiple kisses against the other's temple. Sakusa began to hum a lullaby his mother used to sing to him as a child. Slowly, the blonde's breathing evened out and he stopped trembling.

"Better now?" He kept his tone low and soft. Once he felt the blonde nod against him, he gently rearranged them till Atsumu was laying carefully on his uninjured side with Sakusa propped up above him and continuing his fiddling with the blonde locks. Atsumu blinked up at him, sluggish and still a bit drowsy.

"How long has it been?"

"Since the temple?"

A nod. Sakusa ticked the days off in his head, humming.

"A day less than a week. I managed to get you out quickly but I had to perform a quick cleanup. By the time I got you here, some of your wounds had been infected by the dirt of the debris so I had to reopen them." Sakusa frowned as his hand drifted down to the other's cheek where a bandage covered a large cut. Atsumu was always proud of whatever scar or mark he received during battle for they were his own form of trophies and medal, etched and permanently marked on his skin. While he loved each and every one of them, Sakusa hated seeing them sometimes if only since they were reminders of the pains and struggles the other had gone through. He was brought out of his reverie when the other looked up at him with worried eyes spun from the warmest of sunbeams and darkest bark. He especially loved it when light would hit those coffee orbs and make them seem like the most tempting of infernos.

"And the others? Did they get out? Have they looked for me? Has the General reinstated your kill order? What about—"

“Shh, hey, slow down.” Sakusa chuckled, fondness seeping through his tone as he rearranged the two of them to lie down on the mattress too small for two fully grown men. “Suna and the others managed to escape safely and he’s probably already informed Osamu so while there is a search party out for you, your brother must’ve told them to not be so thorough with how careless they’ve been.” A snort from the raven. “Seriously, Atsu, what type of rookies is the fucking bastard training in that hellhole? When we were their age we were already slaying on the battlefield.”

The blonde managed a small laugh as he traced random shapes on the other’s chest. “Don’t be mean, now. The ones who were trained by Foster-sama, at the very least, show promising progress.”

The mention of their old swordmaster had the atmosphere growing solemn.

“Has he still not returned?”

The blonde slowly shook his head, speaking in a softer tone. “Not since he defended your case to be brought down from death to exile, no.”

They stayed silent for a while, simply allowing themselves to enjoy whatever peace they could have, no matter how short it always was. It was a long while since both of them had been home. It was never an absolute certainty that they were going to see each other again, as was the circumstances of Atsumu’s job and the possible repercussions of Sakusa’s own choice of occupation. Home, for them, will always be a fool’s dream and a hopeful hallucination.

The blonde made a soft humming noise. “Say, Omi Omi.”

“Yes, love?”

“‘Ya ever think about, I don’ know, about how it would’ve been if life was a little kinder to us?”

The topic at hand was one they were constantly coming back to no matter the moment, because that was all they could do. Painful as it was, it’s true. Sakusa sighed, pulling the blonde closer to him. He tucked the other into his chest as he buried his face into soft locks which scent reminded him of days chasing through forests and nights stargazing.

“All the time. If I could, I would give you the world on a silver platter and the cosmos on a golden spoon.”

Atsumu laughed even as Sakusa felt wetness seep into the fabric of his shirt, the grip on him tightening. “Yer such a goof, Omi-kun. Always so poetic.”

Sakusa smiled, pressing a kiss to the crown of the other’s head. “Only for you, my love. Only for you. Now rest, you’ll have to return to the Guild soon before the elders get antsy that their precious golden boy is gone.”

Atsumu whined. “Can I just stay with you, Omi? We could run away together.”

“You know we can’t.” Sakusa brushed a stray strand away, uncovering those glimmering orbs of the world’s brightest summers and warmest falls.

“I know,” a sigh, “I just…”

Sakusa heard the words that were never voiced. _I wish we could be happy_.

“I know, love, I know. Soon, we’ll be together soon.”

“That’s what you always say.”

The raven had no answer to the quiet statement.

“I love you,” he said instead, because that was all he could do. _I love you_ , because it was true. _I love you_ , and I would do anything for you. _I love you_ , and if it means that I have to paint my name red, then so be it. _I love you_ , and it doesn’t matter if the entire world was caught in the crossfire of that love. But the sad fact was that it did matter— Sakusa Kiyoomi could give Miya Atsumu his entire self and soul, he could set the seas on fire and drown the heavens, and it still would never be enough.

The blonde reached up and cupped the raven’s cheeks, smiling as he pulled the other in for a bittersweet kiss that spoke too much yet too few at the same time. I love you, the kiss said. And for them, it was enough. It had to be enough. For neither knew what would happen if they began to seek more than what they had since every time they tried, they always ended up a little more ruined than before.

> _**When all this is over, will our atoms play amongst the stars? Will we dance and laugh through the galaxies? Will we be happy at last?** —d.j._

Osamu would never admit it, but the relief that flowed through his veins when he saw his brother come back whole, overlooking the few wounds that would definitely scar, had him close to tears.

The moment he saw his brother on the crest of the hill behind the Guild, he had dropped whatever nonsensical document the elders had him reviewing and bolted down corridors and stairways, unapologetically shoving others aside in his haste. He vaguely heard Bokuto call his name and Iwaizumi yell out a warning to those further down the hallway but he was too busy trying not to cry while also pushing himself to run faster to care at that moment.

It was an infinity between him pushing the grand oak doors open and him pulling his softly grinning brother into his tight embrace, still mindful of his injuries.

"You fucking _dimwit_ ," he murmured harshly into the other's shoulder. Atsumu laughed brightly, wrapping his arms around the other to return the hug. "I missed 'ya too, scrub."

"Don't scare me like that _ever_ again, 'ya bloody hear me?"

"Yeah, yeah. I'll try not to fall to uncertain death next time."

Osamu pulled away to punch the other's good shoulder and to glare at him. "Not fucking funny, 'ya bastard."

Atsumu only rolled his eyes and slung his arm around his brother's shoulders, steering them into the building. "C'mon, 'ya can scream at me all 'ya want when I've got a few of Tendou-kun's sweets in my stomach."

"I hope yer teeth get cavities."

"The sentiment is noted."

"At least send an owl or something next time."

"I'll find one with the prettiest feathers a humble soldier's coins could get."

"Yer coffers beg to differ."

"Shush, Samu. No one needs to know."

"That yer an idiot? I think 'ya've made that pretty clear by now."

"Stop making me seem bad in front of the newbies!"

"'Ya do that enough by yerself."

" _Oi—_!"

It was long after that they finally got to talk, when the stars dotted the night sky and the world was fast asleep. The two brothers watched the yellow flames of the city slowly flicker out one by one.

"How are 'ya?" Osamu asked quietly, watching the faint flames dance in his brother's eyes.

"Been better, but it's not like it's anything new."

Neither spoke for another long stretch of time.

“Crowned Prince Shinsuke released a proclamation while you were gone.”

Osamu noticed his brother’s shoulders tense, eyes slightly glazing over. “Kita-san? What did he say?”

Osamu knew that the news was good, generally, for the entire kingdom, yet he still knew that it would impact his brother the most considering all that he had gone through.

“The king is dead.”

An emotionless chuckle. “This is gonna sound like treachery, but I’m actually glad. _So_ fucking glad.”

The brunette forced a chuckle.

“And the General? What of ‘im?”

“Clinging on to whatever power he and those wrinkly bastards still have while Kita-san hasn’t been coronated.”

“Good riddance then.”

Another moment of silence.

“If ‘ya got something else to say, Samu, just spi’ it out.”

Osamu closed his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he continued. “Alongside the news of the king’s death and his ascension, there was another thing… Kita-san had already released his first decree.”

Atsumu finally ripped his gaze from the slumbering city to look his brother in the eye. “And that would be?”

“All those who wish to be together with the one they love, regardless of standing, gender, or race, shall no longer be taken into custody and flagged to death. Wedlock shall not be denied, and any attempts of ill-intent or blatant hate towards the individuals shall be punished by the soon-to-be King himself or any of his men by his order. Not to death, never again, but it’s the closest thing to fair and equal justice after all the years under the old bastard.”

Osamu heard a shaky laugh and opened his eyes to see twin orbs lined with silver as Atsumu openly cried. He was smiling in shock, in disbelief, in doubt, in relief, in pain— but the pure joy shone through every other emotion. “I thought,” he choked back another sob. “I always thought that the reforms we talked about as kids were just, I don’ know, hopeful dreams? Wishful thinking? To think that… to think that…”

It was when the brunette leaned his forehead against the blonde’s that he noticed he was crying as well.

“It’s real, Tsumu. Kita-san did it. _We_ did it. And we’ll continue to reform the olden rules.”

The blonde reached up and cupped his brother’s cheeks. “The beginning of dawn,” he whispered, still unable to believe it all to be true. Osamu nodded, mimicking his brother’s position. “The rising of tomorrow has come, Tsumu.”

Taking a deep, shuddering breath, he continued. “Maybe now, now that Kita-san is to be ruler, maybe ‘ya and Sakusa can finally—”

Atsumu shook his head, smile turning slightly somber. “Our own sun has long since set. I’m just glad that ‘ya and Rin don’t have to go through what we had to.”

The brunette felt blood rush to his ears. “Oi, we, it’s not—”

Atsumu snorted and squeezed his brother’s cheeks. “‘Ya can’t lie to me, scrub. Twin-pathy or whatever.”

Osamu shoved the other off with a mutter of curse words appalling enough to make Atsumu throw his head back and laugh.

“I’m serious though,” the brunette said after the other had calmed down enough. “It’s not too late for ‘ya, Tsumu.”

Atsumu let out a sigh, looking far off into the distance. As if he could see far enough to wherever his no longer forbidden lover was. Far enough to see home. He smiled back at his brother, the shadows seemed to gather around the edges of his face and yet Osamu thought his brother had never looked more unburdened. “Who knows, Samu.”

Atsumu gave one last longing look towards the city that had indirectly scorned him his entire life and turned back into his room, departing with a single tap on his brother’s shoulder. “C’mon, ‘ya bugger. Sun’s about’a rise.”

Osamu watched his back retreat, hunched but relaxed. He would always argue that it was him who took care of his reckless and emotionally driven brother, but it was always the other way around. Osamu didn’t know where he would be without the blonde. If there was anything he could do to give his brother the happiness and love he deserved, he was going to do it. He turned back to the horizon where the sun began to reach for the heavens.

Dawn was coming, tomorrow had finally come.

> _**It is not darkness in my heart, just emptiness waiting for the sun.** —d.j._

It took more than 3 years before the reforms were fully established and true peace and justice reigned over the kingdom. The people had taken a liking to Kita Shinsuke much quicker than all his predecessors prior enough to call him the Golden King, his reign deemed the Golden Age. Bad blood with the neighbouring kingdoms had been quickly settled as civil treaties ended wars that spanned decades and generations. Trade had been booming and all was prosperous.

It was everything Atsumu and his cadre had ever dreamed and wished of.

The blonde glanced down at the insignia etched into the clasp of his coat. It came as a surprise to him alone when Kita, immediately after being crowned king, turned towards him in all his golden glory and called him to kneel before him on the dais. The king had asked him to say his vows, not the mandatory one taught at the Guild, but new ones. His _own_ vows, the sort of oath that was never taken by any soldier in their entire history. Kita made the rest of his cadre kneel as well and speak their own vows, all different and yet united. What a sight it must have been for the people to see legends rise and face a reborn land as the King’s Guard. What a sight it must’ve been, when Kita graciously laid the golden laurel of honour on Atsumu’s head and dubbed him High General.

His duty did not change drastically, but it was the change in the Guild and its operations that was most shocking, yet arguably long overdue. Ever since Atsumu had been appointed General and overseer of the Guild, the people had grown to no longer fear and hate them. Under the blonde’s careful guidance, the Guild and its soldiers had come to be respected and loved.

_No longer shall the name of glory be dishonored and tainted ever again._

Those were the words Samson Foster, the land’s greatest swordmaster and Atsumu’s wisest instructor, had left on his farewell note before his final dance with death. He had wished to share one last conversation with his old master, perhaps even share a glass or two. Alas, fate had not permitted him so.

He walked along the weathered path to a fountain he had not returned to in ages. Kita had called for him that morning for a task, but instead he had received a gift of sorts.

_“I know it was not my orders, but I would like to apologize to you, Atsumu.”_

Kita had smiled to him from where he stood by the stained glass window depicting the rising sun, bathing the king in golden hues.

_“There’s nothing to apologize for, Yer Majesty.”_

_“I’ve told you to drop the title when it is only us.”_

Atsumu chuckled. _“I’m serious though, Kita-san. Whatever it is, consider it already forgiven.”_

The king shook his head. _“Even so, compensation is still in order.”_

_“There’s really no need for tha—”_

_“I’ve left a gift for you,”_ Kita arched a brow good-naturedly, challenging his general to refuse his good graces. _“I’ve assigned your afternoon duties to someone else. I want you to take the next few days off to… enjoy my present.”_

_“Days? But training—”_

_“Can wait, Atsumu. The kids could use a few days away from your pestering, I believe.”_ the king chuckled at the sight of the blonde blushing. He sighed after a while, his smile turning a bit softer. _“It might not be much for everyone else, but I do know that it would make my almighty General smile.”_

With a nod, the king had dismissed his general.

 _“Be happy, Atsumu,”_ he heard the king mutter softly when he had turned and walked away. _“You deserve it.”_

To say he was anxious to see what his gift was an understatement. Atsumu had more than he could wish for, whatever Kita had gotten him must’ve been something only known between the two of them. A certain thought pierced through his mind, but he did not want to be so hopeful. Life was never kind to him, he couldn’t think of why it would be so then.

Pausing before the corridor that led to the archway leading to the fountain, he took a deep breath. Steeling himself, he turned the corner. The sight that laid ahead of him was one he had seen in his dreams too many times, so much that he could not believe it to be true until the man, no longer a boy, turned to him. He was older than the one in his dreams, much, much so, but it was the same curly, raven locks and obsidian orbs that looked at him. It was the same smile he had seen in hidden corners and traced in dark rooms. It was the same scene of falling ace of heart petals and the same scent of rosebuds. It was a dream, Atsumu thought, but it was also reality.

The movement of the raven opening his arms, almost pleading and desperate, had Atsumu moving his feet. He was running, running, and running— until finally.

The blonde launched himself into the welcoming arms of the other, sending them both falling into the fountain like all those years ago. The two rose from the water littered with petals, not letting go, and kissed with every intention and emotion in their entire being.

Home.

When Atsumu open his eyes to gaze down into Sakusa’s dark eyes filled with love, when he felt the other cup his cheeks and gently caressed them to wipe away the tears, when he heard the words whispered to him in secrecy being openly proclaimed to all those around who stopped to watch the spectacle…

“I love you, Atsumu Miya.”

Atsumu knew that home had returned, and that it was never going to leave ever again.

>   
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>  _**And in the end I will seek you out amongst the stars. The space dust of me will whisper "I love you" into the infinity of the universe.** —d.j. _


End file.
